October 19, 2021 | International, Other Defence
Here are the Army s new, and ongoing, quality of life initiatives
We always like to say [that] we enlist soldiers, but we retain soldiers and families," the Army chief of staff said.
March 20, 2020 | International, Aerospace
Reaper : des équipages espagnols viennent se former en France
L'Armée de l'air a accueilli deux équipages de Reaper venus d'Espagne, à l'occasion de leur stage de requalification.
33e escadre de surveillance, de reconnaissance et d'attaque.
Le 13 mars, l'Armée de l'air française a annoncé avoir participé à la formation de deux équipages de drones Reaper espagnols. Il s'agissait en fait d'un stage de requalification, une procédure courante pour les pilotes de drones, qui s'est déroulé au sein de la base 709 de Cognac-Chateaubernard, qui accueille la 33e escadre de surveillance, de reconnaissance et d'attaque. La 33e ESRA est celle qui met en œuvre les drones Reaper français et forment les équipages à travers l'Escadron de transformation opérationnelle drone (ETOD) 3/33 « Moselle ».
Coopération franco-espagnole.
Les deux équipages espagnols ont ainsi pu suivre ce stage du 3 au 14 février. Le capitaine Redondo, de l'Ejercito del Aire, a déclaré à cette occasion : « c'est une grande chance pour nous de pouvoir bénéficier du retour d'expérience des pilotes et instructeurs français qui travaillent sur ces drones depuis plus longtemps. Nous avons pu échanger sur nos connaissances et nos missions respectives et sommes reconnaissants d'avoir pu apprendre de leur vécu », rapporte l'armée de l'Air. En effet, la livraison du premier système de drones Reaper à la France remonte à 2013, lequel a immédiatement été employé en Opex, dans le cadre de l'opération Barkhane.
Un dispositif différent.
La France a ainsi accompagné les deux pilotes et les deux opérateurs capteurs espagnols dans ce stage de requalification, qu'ils ont pu valider à l'issue de deux semaines de formation. Les équipages ont particulièrement travaillé sur les procédures de décollage et d'atterrissage de l'aéronef, sur l'emploi du radar ainsi que sur les différentes procédures d'urgence. Mais alors que les équipages espagnols s'articulent autour de deux personnes, la France adopte une approche différente dans ce domaine, avec un équipage à quatre. « Nous travaillons en équipage de deux personnes et les informations recueillies sont envoyées par satellite pour traitement. L'Armée de l'air française forme quant à elle deux personnes de plus qui intègrent l'équipage : un officier renseignement et un opérateur qui traitent les informations instantanément et sont en liaison directe avec leur commandement », met en avant l'Ejercito del Aire. Une distinction dont la France est fière et qui lui permet de transmettre rapidement un renseignement enrichi auprès des décideurs et du C2 lors des missions Reaper.
https://www.air-cosmos.com/article/reaper-des-quipages-espagnols-viennent-se-former-en-france-22777
On the same subject
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October 30, 2020 | International, C4ISR, Security
US Air Force components partner on low code, no code pilot programs
Andrew Eversden WASHINGTON — The 16th Air Force and an Air Force cyber software development unit are partnering together on a “low-code, no-code” pilot program that will allow airmen with minimal training to develop software applications they need. Right now, the DoD is working on developing personnel into expert level coders, but that's not an easily scalable solution, according to Col. William Waynick, director of the Air Force's CyberWorx program, an Air Force office that works with industry and academia to deliver new tools to meet user needs. Hence, the pilot program, called the “Other Airmen,” which aims to get airmen just the basic skills they need to get a job done. “So we're looking at technology out there that will allow anybody with minimal training to develop applications that they need,” Waynick said at C4ISRNET's CyberCon virtual event. “Now, they probably want to go into the complex applications like they would have software houses. But we do believe that a majority of applications out there that the users need can actually be taken care of by low-code, no-code.” Waynick said the team currently has 20 people from across the Air Force and Army working with five vendors on the project. The teams are currently working on applications for equipment tracking, and readiness and training trackers. Another team is working on a contracting pilot to make it easier for industry to submit pitches to acquisition professionals. “They're interested in making an application for pitch decks from industry,” Waynick said. “So industry can, instead of just sending a white paper to an acquisition office, they can actually send the entire pitch. And so that way, they have video, and they can do maybe some Q and A's maybe live, but they're making an application to to provide a capability for industry to provide pitches as well.” The airmen and soldiers working on the project participate on the side of their normal jobs, including piloting, logistics or finance. In March, Waynick said that the team will brief Lt. Gen. Timothy Haugh, commander of the 16th Air Force, on the results of the pilot. CyberWorx is centered on delivering tool the user can actually us, not focusing on the technology for technology's sake, Waynick said. Airmen have an abundance of tools to choose from, he said, but the tools don't always do what the airmen need them to do. “The issue that I've seen, and I'm seeing still, is that there are too many tools. And I would just say, you know, each has a specific function,” Waynick said. “But not everything that the user needs so they have to go to another tool. And a lot of the times these tools aren't exactly what the user needs.” https://www.c4isrnet.com/show-reporter/cybercon/2020/10/29/us-air-force-components-partner-on-low-code-no-code-pilot-programs/
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November 19, 2018 | International, Aerospace, C4ISR
Russian drones can jam cellphones 60 miles away
By: Kelsey D. Atherton Russia's Defense Ministry announced Nov. 6 that the nation had extended the range on its drone-carried jammers to 100 km, or over 60 miles. Drones as a platform for, and not just the target of, electronic warfare means that the sight of a flying robot overhead could signal incoming strikes as well as a sudden inability to call for help. “Russia has been using a UAV-mounted cellphone jammer for a number of years now,” said Samuel Bendett, a research analyst at the Center for Naval Analyses. The drones operate in a two- or three-vehicle pod with a ground station, collectively grouped as a “Leer-3” system. “When these UAVs fly in teams, one acts as a signal-and-comms relay while another acts as a jammer,” Bendett said. “These Leer-3 systems have been around for about two years at this point.” What is changed is the range of the jammer. The Orlan-10 drones already have a range of 75 miles, which means that, with the latest update on the jammer, the drone pod can interfere with signals up to 135 miles away from where the drone was launched. TASS reports that the 60-mile range is a 3.5 times increase in distance from the initial range. In addition, Bendett said there's a chance this capability, or an earlier version of it, has already been witnessed in conflict. “Ukrainian forces claim to spot Leer-3 systems in eastern Ukraine, while there is potential evidence that Leer-3 was used in Syria as well,” Bendett said. “Russian forces are constantly training with Leer-3 UAVs as they practice adversary signal and cell comms suppression, identification and eventual destruction of the enemy force. In fact, this kind of training is part of the official [tactics, techniques and procedures] in electronic warfare and other forces across the Russian military.” Advancements in electronic warfare are one of the key components guiding the development of autonomous systems for the military. For now, drones are conducting electronic warfare against cellular communications, but it's not hard to imagine the same doctrines applied with new technology. In that scenario, it easy to picture other vehicles transforming into jamming machines on future battlefields ... and maybe even present ones. https://www.c4isrnet.com/newsletters/unmanned-systems/2018/11/16/russian-drones-can-jam-cell-phones-60-miles-away